Chapter 127 Eastern Situation

In the East, the Heat were ranked first with a record of 66 wins and 16 losses, also first in the league.

The Knicks were second in the East with 54 wins and 28 losses.

It could be said that ESPN's preseason predictions were heavily criticized, but in the end, they were quite accurate for several key teams, including the Nuggets, Knicks, and Warriors.

The Pacers, Nets, Bulls, Hawks, Celtics, and Bucks were ranked 3rd to 8th.

The 76ers and Raptors failed to make the playoffs in the end, a regrettable elimination.

The Eastern Conference playoff matchups were also released: Heat vs. Bucks, Knicks vs. Celtics, Pacers vs. Hawks, and Nets vs. Bulls.

At the same time as the playoff matchups were released, ESPN also began to predict this year's champion.

The Heat still topped the list, ahead of the Spurs.

"This year's Heat are the champions, and they will solve the games in 16 games at the fastest."

Chad Ford said the most certain words in the simplest language.

Because of his successful preseason predictions, and the Heat's regular-season performance, this statement was also highly recognized by fans.

It should be known that James has successfully evolved this season, and his three-point shooting percentage in the regular season has increased to 40.6%!

Moreover, his average number of shots is not low, reaching 3.3 times, which is also among the best in the league.

Ray Allen has also gotten rid of last season's playoff injuries, and in the regular season, he has a 42% three-point shooting percentage, making 1.8 three-pointers per game.

In addition to Ray Allen, the three-point shooting percentage of Chalmers (40.9%), Battier (43%), and Norris Cole (41.7%) all exceeded 40%.

This is the ultimate version of the Heat!

Moreover, to go into more detail, their regular-season record against major competitors such as the Spurs and Thunder was 2 wins and 0 losses.

Strength, confidence, everything indicates that they will win this year's final championship!

"Coach, have you thought about how to deal with the Heat? When they have the Big Three and so many three-point shooters?"

Before the playoffs started, a reporter asked Popovich this question.

"My goal is to fully prepare for the game against the Rockets. I don't want to be eliminated in the first round."

Popovich's words were still the same.

However, it can still be felt from his words that he doesn't want to talk about the game with the Heat too early.

And to be honest, the Spurs still have Tracy McGrady, the eternal first-round virgin, on the team this year.

"T-Mac, breaking your cherry on your old club this year, tell us how you feel first."

In the Spurs' locker room, Diaw was also joking with McGrady.

"That would be cool."

McGrady didn't care about Diaw's joke, and the way he left the Rockets was also very unpleasant. It wouldn't be bad to break his cherry on the Rockets.

On April 20, the first round of the playoffs kicked off, with the Thunder vs. Grizzlies, Lakers vs. Clippers in the West, and Knicks vs. Celtics, Nets vs. Bulls in the East.

Unlike last year when the upper-half teams won across the board, there were frequent upsets this year.

The Nets lost their first game 82-90, and the title favorite Thunder also lost 93-99 to the Grizzlies, both losing their home-court advantage in a shocking upset.

It seems that Popovich's joke made this year's first round unpredictable.

On April 21, the first game of the Spurs' and Rockets' playoff series kicked off at the AT&T Center.

The Grizzlies' upset greatly boosted the Rockets' morale, and they gave the Spurs a 4-0 blow to start the game.

The Rockets' bench erupted, and coach McHale's eyes were full of hope.

But what they didn't expect was that this was the only lead the Rockets had in the entire game.

Harden was completely shut down by Tang Tian, ​​and he was 0-for-7 in the first quarter.

In the more competitive playoffs, his foul-drawing not only didn't work against Tang Tian, but it also didn't work against others.

The Spurs finally defeated the Rockets 97-77 in the first game, taking the first win of the playoffs.

Harden was 4-for-21 with only 12 points and 6 assists, and Parsons had the Rockets' highest 25 points, 8 rebounds, and 3 assists.

On the Spurs' side, Parker and Duncan both had 18 points, Tang Tian had 14 points, 4 assists, 2 steals, and 1 block, and 6 Spurs players scored in double figures.

"Um, Popovich said he would prepare well for the game and didn't want to be eliminated in the first round."

"They did prepare well, didn't they win by 20 points..."

"Haha, that's so true, you can't believe a single word Popovich says!"

"Harden played so confused, he was completely shut down by Tang."

"When your scoring depends on the referee's scale, it's hard for you to perform well. Harden has a long way to go."

"I felt like Tang didn't use his full strength in this game, he can really run for Defensive Player of the Year!"

"It's a pity that McGrady didn't play in garbage time tonight, otherwise that scene would have been very interesting."

"It's still early, this is only the first game, wouldn't it be more interesting to play at the Toyota Center?"

……

After this game, the fans' discussions on social media were not small.

Compared with the high-profile Heat being infinitely favored, they were so low-key that they could only rely on fans' discussions to find a sense of existence.

After two days of rest, the second game between the Spurs and Rockets continued at the AT&T Center.

Harden's state in this game has obviously recovered compared to the first game. He was 7-for-24 from the field and 11-for-14 from the free throw line, scoring 27 points, 11 rebounds, and 6 assists.

Parsons also had 17 points, 5 rebounds, and 5 assists.

However, no one else on the Rockets scored in double figures, and they eventually lost 86-97.

Tang Tian had a team-high 25 points, along with 5 assists, 3 steals, and 2 blocks, Duncan had 18 points and 11 rebounds, and Ginobili had 17 points and 3 assists.

After two games, the Spurs quietly led 2-0.

After two games, the two teams will also move to Houston to start the next two games.

"Tang, you said it was like that in San Antonio, if James goes to Houston, wouldn't the number of free throws be over 20?"

On the plane, Green was complaining to Tang Tian about Harden's number of free throws.

Tang Tian nodded with a wry smile.

As for Harden, the 15 free throws in the last game should indeed be complained about, but it must be said that his adjustment ability is really good.

In the last game, he knew that it would be difficult to play against him, so he tried to find mismatches with other people.

And more importantly, he only used one game to find the referee's penalty scale.

If the Rockets' overall strength was not weak, it would not be certain who would win or lose in the last game.

Also, Beverley's defense against Parker in the last game was very eye-catching.

If you analyze it carefully, this third game will really not be as easy as the first two games.

"T-Mac, Houston is here."

The plane landed at Houston International Airport, and the players got off the plane one after another.

Diaw saw McGrady still in a daze and reminded him.

McGrady withdrew his gaze from outside the window, responded, and then stood up from his seat.

ps: The first update is delivered, special thanks to A Long Aotian and dsALex777 for the reward of ten thousand, the extra update has been sent, please check it